Fear Of A Muslim Island

Muslim man, Buddhist elephant (insomuch as that is possible).

Muslims can’t catch a break. Publicly discriminated against in America, bombed or oppressed in the Middle East, and feared in Europe. Even in Sri Lanka, can’t catch a break. In the East, I’ve met Tamils who’ve said they’d rather sell their land to a Sinhalese than a Muslim, and when a candidate there tried to get Muslims and Tamils to run on the same platform, it was trouble. In Colombo – a majority minority city – Muslims growing public face has also led to resentment. So much so that now, in Dambulla, ‘Buddhist’ protesters seem to have succeeded in closing a 50 year old mosque.

It’s a shame. If you visit the Gangaramaya Temple (the part in the Beira Lake) the plaque says it was built by Moosajees, who I presume are Muslim. On the thousand rupee note (unless you get a Mahinda) there’s an elephant with a mahout looking fellow. That man is Umar Lebbai Panicker, a Muslim from Eravur who donated the tusker to the Dalada Maligawa temple.

Muslims are Sri Lankans. They are neighbors and friends. Yet today they are an ethnic minority which, while on the rise economically, is viewed with suspicion by many. Not that Muslims don’t have problems. First off, Y U SPILL WATER ALL OVER THE BATHROOM. Foot washing has a time and a place, and it’s not in the office bathroom. That used to be my major issue. More seriously, in the East people seemed to have issues with Muslims lending money and fertilizer to Tamil farmers and then repossessing the land if the harvest didn’t come in. Or, in Jaffna, with Muslims from outside setting up shops. Neither of these are bad things per se, but it shows the conflicts between Muslims and Tamils.

In the south, one major issue has been loudspeakers. Muslims started doing the call to prayer over loudspeakers and Buddhists retaliated with all night electric pirith and things really got out of control. Then there are the nagging cultural issues. The rising number of women in full hijab (also known as full ninja, perhaps offensively), a visible sign of Wahabbi influence, and a sort of checking out of the community at large. I’m friends with a lot of secularish Muslims, but many Muslims really keep to their own community, which can lead to misunderstanding. I mean, try dating a Muslim girl. Well, you can date a Muslim girl perhaps, but try marrying one. Doesn’t happen, least not without converting, and penis mutilation.

That said, it is important to remember that all communities have our problems if you look at them close enough. I’d venture to say that these are human failings common to us all, manifested in different cultural ways. What discomfits me about the recent protests and mosque closing in Dambulla is A) that it happened B) that this push against public Islam seems sanctioned from the top and C) that it’s brought out a lot of bad blood against Muslim Sri Lankans. I do think the mosque should have stayed open, as it has been for 50 years. When I was at my most Buddhist (in terms of practice) I was in Canada and I found shelter and community among many other religions. Mainly Jewish places, but that was just Montreal. My experience of faith is that I find much more common in spirit with other religious communities than I do to divide.

But this isn’t a religious issue, really. Islam and Sri Lankan Buddhism are often more cultural markers than religious. Still, I think we’ve tread the path of ethnic division before, and IT’S NOT A GOOD IDEA. Thus far, Muslims are the only major community to not stage a violent insurrection, so we should A) give them some respect and B) keep it that way (tho I reject the argument that violence is ever justified by X, I’m just saying). Muslims are the only community that’s widely trilingual, that generally minds their biz, and they’re a credit and boon to Sri Lanka. They’re also my friends and neighbors, so all the hating is really uncouth and uncool.

Seriously people, this is a small island and we all have to live together. Forget the culture conflicts and petty annoyances, Muslims are friends and neighbors and they deserve to be treated the way, what’s the golden rule, do onto Muslims as you would have done onto youse. Would you be happy if your 50 year old temple or church was demolished, especially after a mob prevented you from going in and praying? I think not. Whatever the specifics of the case, it is damn important to emphasize that the Sri Lankan Muslim community is a vital part of Sri Lanka, a respected part of Sri Lanka, and, ultimately, family.

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Fascinating to see all the comments here and also how far away the discussion has gone from Dambulla.

I think we Sri Lankans are genetically modified by the British so as to we will never fix a problem but create a new one or try to fix something else but never the problem, don’t trust me ? read above ?

“I felt that was what Indi was saying when he stated that Muslims can’t catch a break in Sri Lanka.”

Perhaps contextual reading is an alien concept to you, but here is what Indi said; if you go beyond the first sentence, it’s pretty much clear:

“Muslims can’t catch a break. Publicly discriminated against in America, bombed or oppressed in the Middle East, and feared in Europe. Even in Sri Lanka, can’t catch a break. In the East, I’ve met Tamils who’ve said they’d rather sell their land to a Sinhalese than a Muslim, and when a candidate there tried to get Muslims and Tamils to run on the same platform, it was trouble. In Colombo – a majority minority city – Muslims growing public face has also led to resentment. So much so that now, in Dambulla, ‘Buddhist’ protesters seem to have succeeded in closing a 50 year old mosque.”

“Also going by all the facebook comments and blog write ups about how Muslims supposedly do not have any rights in Sri Lanka and are being actively persecuted not only by society but by the state. I don’t think these claims have much basis reality to be honest”

So why not address your points to those people on FB who are actually saying it, instead of here where they are not. Also, while you are on FB, have a peek at the posts claiming that Muslims are trying to prevent Sinhalese reproducing, groups that show lions killing pigs, etc.

I have no idea why you seem to be hostile and always seem inclined to create arguments, but this is a blog that allows people to respond to the original post and provide their comments/opinions, and I did so. If you have issues with that it’s not my problem, sorry. But I do not think I have done anything wrong in expressing my opinion or penning my response here.

Perhaps you can practice what you preach and keep any comments you have to your own blog? Lead by example and maybe the rest of us will follow. However I don’t think that’s how this particular blog works. If it did the comments feature would be turned off.

“Shia has invaded and rapidly establishing in Sri Lanka Muslim community. Here is the real growth of the real enemies of Islam. This would be major threat to us a whole.” ( http://tinyurl.com/89gtm3f )

“For my knowledge Zionists have invaded Ilma International and utilizing our girls to damage Islam. The sponosors of this program namely REVLON and Nestle are zionist companies working for Israel. For further information visit the link below.” ( http://tinyurl.com/8xaxgco )

Let’s just say racism and bigotry make me pretty hostile. I didn’t say that that hostility towards your bigotry is your problem. But I think bigotry as a whole is a problem for SL and we should speak out against it. It’s not your expressing that’s the prob so much as what you have to express.

As for commenting elsewhere, I merely pointed out that since you were referring to something not on this blog (but on FB) you should address it there and not here where no such comment has been made. Is that really a difficult concept to grasp?

You are still pointing pathetically to non-SL examples. The FB groups I pointed to you are set up by Buddhist Sinhalese and have thousands of members. Can you show similar examples by SL Muslims against other religions here in SL?

all what you link here are reprehensible and should be condemned. but you really havent condemned the sinhala extremists have you? you are just pussy footing with the argument, “well the muslims do it too”.

no matter who does it , its wrong, and i support those extremists being brought to justice, and you apparently do not…

i see now that now another mosque have been targeted in dehiwela by lunatic monks. this is what you get when pussy footing bigots like you, are in charge of govt.

so when say mahayana followers attack a Buddhist temple , will you regard such acts the same as when Muslims attack a temple?
its quite obvious what would en-flame religious tensions.

violence no matter who perpetrates it is wrong, and yes local muslims should take the blame when mosque are burned for inter-sect rivalry. but again i guess for you, since Muslims do it among themselves its ok when Buddhist attack mosques too …

i must say your bigoted views really bring the best of your intelligence.

Roshan, why should there be a difference if the place of worship happens to belong to the same religion one is practicing? Just like a murder is a murder. It does not make it any less reprehensible if the murderer and the murdered belonged to the same race/religion/caste etc.

I am merely questioning the studied silence of the Sri Lankan Muslim community in general when it comes to the Muslim-on-Muslim violence that has taken place in Sri Lanka. On an issue basis, surely the burning down of a mosque and the murder of Muslims is a lot worse than what happened in Dambulla? But that is exactly what happened in Beruwala. And long before the shrine issue in Anuradhapura, Why has there been/is there not an uproar about these acts of violence?

Is it similar to how there is no uproar from Muslims over Sunnis and Shias killing each other enmasse in places like Pakistan and Iraq, but all hell breaks loose if Palestinian homes are demolished? (I’m not excusing either action here).

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“An unknown group threatened to throw acid on girls going for tuition classes,” said Aneesa Firthous of the Womens’ Association. “The older Ulemas are afraid of the radical youth and keep their mouths shut.

Kattankudy is no longer Kattankudy, it is Shaitankudy,” said a livid trader.

Last year, the Wahabi youth broke Pailwan’s grave and attacked the houses of his followers. But public support was lukewarm. “Most agree that Wahabism is ideal. But they do not support its instant imposition,” said Firdous.

“Breaking the grave was alright, but not attacking the houses of Pailwan’s followers,” said Aneesa.”

Protesting, say, against a mosque, should not be condemned. The right to protest is a hallmark of any functioning democracy. What should be condemned, however, is resorting to violence and vigilante justice in the course of protesting.

Your point being? I’m merely pointing out that the conspiracy theories of the Sinhalese on the facebook groups you mention are no different to the conspiracy theories that many in the Muslim community hold. Join some of the SL Muslim groups on yahoo and you will be able to see comments “against other religions” – including against other non-Sunni Muslims, as well as – you guessed it – the evil Jewish people.

N, it doesn’t. But IMO the differing responses have been quite hypocritical.

But regarding your second question, personally I think yes it is OK to be an asshole to someone else if that someone else is an asshole to you. Of course there is a limit, like using violence or murdering etc at a personal level (but again, not when its the state crushing a militant group like the LTTE for example). I never used to think this way but things like ‘turning the other cheek’ and ‘may all living beings be happy, healthy and well’ don’t really work in real life in my experience.

What is the source of Muslim incitement that has led to violent rioting in Mumbai and hate speech, including in Parliament by Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen MP Asaduddin Owaisi? What has prompted ‘threats’ to northeasterners in several states, including Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, resulting in thousands leaving cities where they work and study?

In an excellent investigative report, Faraz Ahmed of The Express Tribune of Pakistan exposes the vile methods used for manufacturing Muslim rage and inciting hate and violence against non-Muslims. We reproduce it below:

Oh please quit with the holier-than-thou attitude. If you think Sri Lankan Muslim girls are all prim and proper I’m sorry but you need to get your head checked. Wearing a hijab or donning a ninja suit does not provide any information about a person’s morals, integrity or social standing. Neither does growing a beard and wearing a skull cap. And as for the hijab providing “protection”… hmm yeah okay…

I do agree that recent times our people have built mosques in very nook and corner of Sri Lanka without properly thinking about the social, communal and environmental implications of such buildings. Of course building mosques is a rewarding act in Islam if there is a need for it, and yet, what has really happened is totally different: it has become a competition between some Islamic groups to compete in building mosques. With pitiful dogmatic differences in Islamic legal discourses some extremist groups broke away from the mainstream Muslim community in Sri Lanka and I do not need tell you about them. As you are one of our community you may have come to know them.

We live in a non-Muslim country. Why do not we have a sense of humour and respect for others? We behave with a mentality of being a majority even though we are the second minority in Sri Lanka without any geopolitical influence or without any influence at all. I agree that the president rightly said that we have more than two mosques in one street within a short distance. Who is responsible for a such competition in mosque building without any need for such mosques? Bring the culprit into book. Is it the Saudi government that is responsible for this mess or our so called self-proclaimed Islamic groups? Will the Saudi Arabian government come to our support in a time of danger for us in Sri Lanka? I honestly think that some of these radicals among us need to learn how to live in non-Muslim country. I think that some of these anti-Muslim trends have increased in Sri Lanka because of our failure to live in accordance with Islamic teachings of co-existence and communal harmony.